UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC 27711

OCT 2 2007

OFFICE OF

AIR QUALITY PLANNING

AND STANDARDS

MEMORANDUM

SUBJECT: Guidance on SIP Elements Required Under Sections 110(a)(l) and

(2) for the 1997 8-hour Ozone and PM2.S National Ambient Air

Quality Standards

FROM: ~WilliamT.Hamett,Direct-j . OJ~ UAir Quality Policy Divisio~ftt

TO: Air Division Directors, Regions I-X

The purpose ofthis memorandum is to provide guidance on the

"infrastructure" elements for State Implementation Plans (SIPs) required under

section 110(a)(l) and (2) ofthe Clean Air Act (CAA) for the 1997 8-hour ozone

and fine particulate matter (PM2.S) national ambient air quality standards

(NAAQS). Attachment A to this memo provides a list ofthe basic elements that

States must include in their SIPs. To the extent that existing SIPs for ozone and

particulate matter already meet these requirements, States need only certify that

fact to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). To the extent that existing

SIPs for ozone and particulate matter fail to address any ofthese requirements for

purposes ofthe 1997 8-hour ozone or PM2.5 NAAQS, States need to make timely

SIP submissions to EPA to address these requirements. We anticipate that States

will already have approved SIPs in place for ozone that meet the basic

requirements ofsections 11O(a)(l) and (2). For PM2.S, however, we anticipate

that many States may need to make SIP revisions to ensure that their existing SIPs

for prior particulate matter NAAQS are revised to include the new particle size

indicator.

Background

On July 18, 1997, the EPA promulgated new and revised NAAQS for

ozone and particulate matter. For ozone, EPA revised the NAAQS to provide an

8-hour averaging period (versus a I-hour averaging period for the pre-existing

NAAQS),and set the level ofthe standard at 0.08 ppm (versus 0.12 ppm for the

pre-existing NAAQS). For PM, EPA promulgated a new 24-hour and a new

Internet Address (URL) • http://www.epa.gov

Recycled/Recyclable. Printed wnh Vegetable Oil Based Inks on Recycled Paper (Minimum 25% Postconsumer)
annual NAAQS for PM2.5 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter less than or

equal to a nominal 2.5 micrometers). I

Under sections 110(a)(l) and (2) ofthe CAA, all States are required to

submit plans to provide for the implementation, maintenance, and enforcement of

the 8-hour ozone and PM2.5standards. Sections 11 O(a)(l) and (2) require States

to address basic SIP requirements, including emissions inventories, monitoring,

and modeling to assure attainment and maintenance ofthe standards. By statute,

SIPs meeting the requirements ofsections 11O(a)(l) and (2) are to be submitted

by States within 3 years after promulgation of a new or revised standard. This

being the case, States were required to submit such SIPs for the 1997 standards to

EPA no later than July 2000. However, intervening litigation over the 1997

8-hour ozone and PM2.5NAAQS, created uncertainty about how to proceed and,

to date, States have not submitted SIPs to meet the basic or infrastructure

requirements enumerated in sections 110(a)(l) and (2).

In March of2004, Earth Justice initiated a lawsuit against EPA for failure

to take action against States that had not made SIP submissions to meet the

requirements ofsections 11 O(a)(l) and (2), i.e., failure to make a "finding of

failure to submit." On March 10,2005, EPA entered into a Consent Decree with

Earth Justice that obligates EPA to make official findings whether States have

made required SIP submissions by dates certain. The Consent Decree obligates

EPA to determine whether States have made SIP submissions required to meet

CAA section 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i) relating to interstate transport by no later than

March 15,2005. The Consent Decree also obligates EPA to make a

determination whether States have made submissions necessary to meet the

remaining ll0(a)(l) and (2) requirements by December 15,2007, for the 8-hour

ozone NAAQS, and by October 5, 2008, for the PM2.,5 NAAQS? It should be

noted that the latter determinations pertain only to whether the submissions are

complete, pursuant to section 11 O(k)(l)(A), and do not constitute EPA approval

or disapproval ofsuch submissions. In addition, the determinations required by

the Consent Decree explicitly exclude any determinations regarding: (i)

I More recently, on December 18, 2006, EPA again revised the standards for particulate matter,

tightening the 24-hour PMZ.

5 standard from 65 micrograms per cubic meter (/lg/m3

) to 35 /lg/m,3

and retaining the current annual fine particle standard at 15 /lg/m3. EPA also decided to retain the

existing 24-hour PMlO standard of ISO /lg/m3and to revoke the annual PMlO • This guidance

document applies only to the SIP submission requirements for the 1997 8-hour Ozone and PMZ.5

NAAQS. EPA will address SIP requirements for the 2006 NAAQS separately, although the

Agency notes that the statutory requirements for SIPs for new or revised NAAQS are comparable.

zThe dates specified in the Consent Decree reflect the anticipated dates for submission of

nonattainment area SIPs for each NAAQS, plus six months for EPA evaluation. EPA presumed

that States would make SIP submissions meeting the basic requirements ofsections 110(a)(l) and

(2) for each NAAQS contemporaneously with, or not later than, SIPs meeting the nonattainment

area plan requirements. EPA notes that recent decisions by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the

District of Columbia concerning the implementation rule for the 8-hour Ozone NAAQS have

affected certain nonattainment area SIP requirements. These judicial decisions do not, however,

affect States' obligations under the CAA or EPA's obligations under the Consent Decree

concerning the infrastructure SIP requirements ofsections 11O(a)(l) and (2).

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submissions required by section llO(a)(2)(C) to the extent that subsection pertains

to a nonattainment area new source permit program in part D Title I ofthe CAA;

and (ii) submissions required by section 110(a)(2)(I) for Part D Title I

nonattainment area plans.

In accordance with the Consent Decree, EPA has already published a

finding that all States had failed to submit new SIPs addressing interstate transport

for the 8-hour ozone and PM2.5NAAQS, as required by section 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i) of

the CAA (70 FR 21147, April 25, 2005). That finding initiated a 2-year deadline

for the promulgation of a Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) by EPA for each

such State unless, prior to that time, each State makes a submission to meet the

requirements of Section 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i) and EPA approves such submission. On

May 12,2005, EPA published the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) which

identifies the degree to which emissions of S02 and NOx in certain States

significantly contribute to nonattainment of, or interfere with maintenance of, the

1997 8-hour ozone and PM2.5NAAQS in downwind States, and the reductions

that must be achieved in those States to eliminate such contributions.

On August 15, 2006, EPA issued guidance entitled "Guidance for State

Implementation Plan (SIP) Submissions to Meet Current Outstanding Obligations

Under Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) for the 8-hour Ozone and PM2.5 National Ambient

Air Quality Standards." The section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) guidance indicates that

States within the CAIR region can satisfy 110(a)(2)(D) by satisfying the

requirements ofthe CAIR, and addresses what other States that are outside ofthe

CAIR region should consider doing to meet the "significant contribution" and

"interfere with maintenance" requirements ofsection 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i) for the 1997

standards. The section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) guidance also addresses what all States

(whether inside or outside ofthe CAIR region) should consider in making SIP

submissions to meet the "prevention ofsignificant deterioration" and "protect

visibility" requirements ofsection 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i). The SIP submissions

addressed by the section 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i) guidance are those that are necessary to

rectify the finding of failure to submit that EPA has already issued for all States

for section 11 O(a)(2)(D)(i).

The guidance contained in this memorandum is intended as a reminder

that States must have SIPs for the 1997 8-hour ozone and PM2.5NAAQS that

meet all ofthe requirements ofsections 110(a)(l) and (2). Pursuant to the

Consent Decree, EPA has an obligation to take action to determine whether States

have made such submissions by the dates noted above. Because States should

currently be in the process ofsubmitting nonattainment SIPs for the 8-hour ozone

standard and working on nonattainment area SIPs for the PM2.5 standard, we want

to alert them to be sure that their SIPs also meet the basic requirements of sections

110(a)(l) and (2).

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Guidance

The EPA believes that the currently-approved section 110 SIPs for ozone

may already be adequate in most cases to implement the 8-hour ozone NAAQS.

Many ofthe required section 110(a)(l) and (2) SIP elements relate to the general

information and authorities that constitute the "infrastructure" ofthe ozone air

quality management program, and these have been in place since the initial SIPs

were submitted in response to the 1970 Clean Air Act. For particulate matter,

however, EPA believes that some States may need to adopt language specific to

the PM2.5 NAAQS to ensure that they have adequate SIP provisions to implement

the PM2.5NAAQS, e.g., existing State laws may refer to PMIO specifically or to

particulate matter more generally, rather than to PM2.5. We believe that with one

exception, the infrastructure requirements ofsections 11 O(a)(l) and (2) are

relatively self explanatory, and past experience with SIPs for other NAAQS

should enable States to meet these requirements with assistance from EPA

Regions. The one exception is section 11 0(a)(2)(G) relating to emergency

episodes, for which EPA intends to take additional regulatory action to provide

necessary numerical limits and concentration levels for emergency episode action

plans for PM2.5.

States should review and revise, as appropriate, their existing ozone and

particulate matter SIPs to ensure that they are adequate to address the 8-hour

ozone and PM2.5 NAAQS. If a State determines that its existing SIP is adequate,

then the State needs to certify, via a letter to the Agency from the Governor or

his/her designee, that the existing SIPs contain provisions that address the

requirements for the 8-hour ozone and PM2.5 NAAQS. If a State determines that

its existing ozone or particulate matter SIPs are inadequate, however, then the

State needs to submit a SIP revision to make the appropriate changes.

With respect to PM2.5, States may find it more advantageous to revise the

language in their SIPs to identify "particulate matter" as the pollutant being

implemented and define the size fractions as "those that EPA has currently set for

the NAAQS" to the extent such an approach would be authorized by State law.

This will ensure that the provisions remain adequate in the event that future

changes occur to the particulate matter standards. States could also specify both

PMIO and PM2.5as the size fractions if a State prefers to be more specific.

As an aid to the States in addressing the PM2.5 related requirements of

Section 11 0(a)(2)(G) pertaining to emergency episode provisions, EPA intends to

take action to revise 40 CFR, Part 51, subpart H (sections 51.150). The rule

changes will establish the priority classifications which determine the emergency

episode plan requirements for each area and establish a significant harm level

(SHL) for PM2.5. Until these changes are final, EPA recommends that States rely

on relevant information contained in upcoming EPA rule proposals or other EPAissued interim guidance to satisfy the section 11 0(a)(2)(G) requirements for

PM2.5. After EPA issues final rules, EPA will work with States to revise SIP

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submissions that were based on interim information, as appropriate. States may

wish to take advantage ofthe parallel processing mechanism for making their

section 110(a)(2)(G) submittal in the interim while EPA completes rulemakings

onthe SHL and the emergency episode plan requirements under 40 CFR 51.150.

The SHL for the 8-hour ozone NAAQS will remain unchanged as 0.60

ppm ozone, 2-hr average, as indicated in 40 CFR Part 51.151. EPA believes that

the existing ozone-related provisions of 40 CFR Subpart H remain appropriate.

Therefore, EPA expects that for purposes ofthe 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS,

States need only to confirm that they have existing emergency episode plan

provisions consistent with EPA's existing regulatory requirements.

By statute, States are required to make SIP submissions to meet the basic

requirements ofCAA sections 110(a)(l) and (2) within 3 years after promulgation

of any new or revised standards. For the 1997 8-hour ozone and PM2.5 standards,

this deadline was July 2000. By Consent Decree, as noted above, EPA has agreed

to make a determination whether or not States have submitted SIPs to meet these

requirements by a date certain. In the case of 8-hour ozone SIPs, this date is

December 15,2007. For PM2.5SIPs, this date is October 15,2008. In order for

EPA to evaluate the submissions adequately, EPA requests that States make their

certifications of SIP adequacy or SIP revisions as soon as possible and to the

extent feasible sufficiently in advance ofthese dates to allow EPA time to

determine whether complete submissions have been made.

If you have any questions concerning this guidance, please contact

Mr. David Sanders at (919) 541-3356. Please ensure that the appropriate air

agency officials for States in your Region are made aware ofthis guidance.

Attachments

cc: Margo Oge, OTAQ

Steve Page, OAQPS

Brian McLean, OAP

Richard Wayland, OAQPS

Lydia Wegman, OAQPS

Peter Tsirigotis, OAQPS

5
Attachment A: Required Section 110 SIP Elements

The SIP elements listed below are required under section llO(a)(I) and

(2). Section llO(a)(I) provides the procedural and timing requirements for SIPs.

Section 11 O(a)(2) lists the basic or "infrastructure" elements that all SIPs must

contain. We note that this list is not intended to constitute an interpretation of

these provisions, or a change of past practice with respect to these provisions,

merely a brief description ofthe required SIP elements.

Emission limits and other control measures: Section 110(a)(2)(A) requires

SIPs to include enforceable emission limits and other control measures, means or

techniques, schedules for compliance and other related matters. EPA notes that

the specific nonattainment area plan requirements ofsection 11 O(a)(2)(I) are

subject to the timing requirement ofsection 172, not the timing requirement of

section 11 O(a)(l), and also that SIPs to meet this section are not covered by the

Consent Decree.

Ambient air quality monitoring/data system: Section llO(a)(2)(B) requires

SIPs to include provisions to provide for establishment and operation of ambient

air quality monitors, collecting and analyzing ambient air quality data, and making

these data available to EPA upon request.

Program for enforcement of control measures: Section 11 O(a)(2)(C) requires

States to include a program providing for enforcement of all SIP measures and the

regulation of construction of new or modified stationary sources to meet

prevention ofsignificant deterioration (PSD) and nonattainment NSR

requirements.

Interstate transport: Section 110(a)(2)(D) requires SIPs to include provisions

prohibiting any source or' other type of emissions activity in one State from

contributing significantly to nonattainment, or interfering with maintenance, ofthe

NAAQs in another State, or from interfering with measures required to prevent

significant deterioration of air quality or to protect visibility in another State.

EPA has.already issued CAIR to assist States in developing SIPs to meet this

requirement for purposes ofthe 8-hour Ozone and PM2.5 NAAQS, and has issued

separate guidance to all States on how to comply with each prong ofthis statutory

provision.

Adequate resources: Section 110(a)(2)(E) requires States to provide for

adequate personnel, funding, and legal authority under State law to carry out its

SIP, and related issues.

Stationary source monitoring system: Section 110(a)(2)(F) requires States to

establish a system to monitor emissions from stationary sources and to submit
periodic emissions reports.

Emergency power: Section 11 O(a)(2)(G) requires States to provide for authority

to address activities causing imminent and substantial endangerment to public

health, including contingency plans to implement the emergency episode

provisions in their SIPs.

Future SIP revisions: Section 11 O(a)(2)(H) requires States to have the authority

to revise their SIPs in response to changes in the NAAQS, availability of

improved methods for attaining the NAAQS, or in response to an EPA finding

that the SIP is substantially inadequate.

Consultation with government officials: Section 11O(a)(2)(J) requires States to

provide a process for consultation with local governments and Federal Land

Managers carrying out NAAQS implementation requirements pursuant to section

121 relating to consultation.

Public notification: Section 11 O(a)(2)(J) further requires States to notify the

public ifNAAQS are exceeded in an area and to enhance public awareness of

measures that can be taken to prevent exceedances.

PSD and visibility protection: Section 11 O(a)(2)(J) also requires States to meet

applicable requirements of part C related to prevention ofsignificant deterioration

and visibility protection.

Air quality modeling/data: Section 1IO(a)(2)(K) requires that SIPs provide for

performing air quality modeling for predicting effects on air quality of emissions

from any NAAQS pollutant and submission ofsuch data to EPA upon request.

Permitting fees: Section 1IO(a)(2)(L) requires SIPs to require each major

stationary source to pay permitting fees to cover the cost ofreviewing, approving,

implementing and enforcing a permit.

Consultation/participation by affected local entities: Section I IO(a)(2)(M)

requires States to provide for consultation and participation in SIP development

by local political subdivisions affected by the SIP.

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